Page 21 - Studio International - June 1966

Italian State or the Municipality of Venice, Italian new and vital movement in British art.
business houses, American collectors, Unesco, etc. In In 1958 William Scott had to compete with Tobey; in
these the British have had a fair, if not spectacular, show- 1960 Victor Pasmore, partnered by Paolozzi and the
ing. Sutherland won the 1952 Sao Paulo Acquisition graphic work of Geoffrey Clark, Henry Cliffe, and Merlyn
Prize; two years later Ben Nicolson won the Ulisse Prize; Evans, did not make the expected impact. Like Bacon,
David Bright Awards went to Armitage in 1958, Pao- he is an artist who would probably score at a second
lozzi two years later, and Dalwood in 1962. (In 1958 showing, while Bacon himself would be a good subject
Hayter was involved in a farcical incident when an for one of the exhibitions organized by the Biennale
Italian religious order gave him the first prize for a re- authorities themselves, in the Central Pavilion, a privi-
ligious work. The short-sighted priest first selected a work lege not yet accorded to any British artist. Although
entitled Maculate Conception, an understandable error Dalwood attracted attention in 1962, Ceri Richards and
which was quickly corrected.) In 1962 Ceri Richards Robert Adams added little to their stature, while at the
won the Premio Einaudi and in 1964 Roger Hilton the 1964 Biennale Hilton, Tilson, Gwyther Irwin, and Mea-
Unesco Reproduction Prize. dows made a relatively weak group.
Mrs Lilian Somerville, head of the Fine Arts Depart- How were these artists chosen ? The system remains
ment of the British Council, considers that after the basically the same as before the war, when a major task
Moore prize in 1948, the next 'break-through' year for of the British Council's Fine Arts Committee was to
British art was 1952 when, in addition to Sutherland and choose for Venice. Now, of course, it is responsible for
Wadsworth, Britain presented a group of young sculptors selecting many more exhibitions, including Sao Paulo,
—Adams, Armitage, Butler, Chadwick, Clark, Meadows, Paris, and Tokyo, as well as organizing touring shows
Paolozzi, and Turnbull. This clever and courageous throughout the world. The last report for 1964-5 lists
move contrasted with the general rule of showing mature, over forty exhibitions, ranging from the important Lon-
recognized artists, and these young men, with their new don: The New Scene which toured North America, to
vitality and assurance, largely the outcome of Moore's Blake's Illustrations to the Book of Job which visited Nigeria.
example and success, made a strong impression. This vast undertaking is directed by a Committee
Two years later this impetus was maintained with headed by Sir Philip Hendy and a staff led by Lilian
Nicholson, Francis Bacon, and Freud, although in the Somerville. The Committee includes well-known officials,
Left case of Bacon it may have been a case of premature ex- Norman Reid and Gabriel White, distinguished critics
Roger Hilton's paintings at posure. But thereafter there has been a steady decline. such as Sir Herbert Read and J. M. Richards, and
the last Biennale, 1964
Through the doorway one Although Chadwick won a prize in 1956, the so-called younger blood in the form of Alan Bowness, Norbert
by Guy Irwin 'Kitchen-Sink' school —Bratby, Greaves, Middleditch, Lynton, and David Thompson. But no artists and no
and Jack Smith—was a great disappointment. Before dealers—a rule strictly adhered to.
Right
Bernard Meadows' sculptures registering surprise at their choice, however, it must be The Committee has changed very little over the years—
at the 1964 Biennale recalled that they had been hailed by leading critics as a partly because at first members were appointed without